Being in Davos II

Okay, I admit it. I may just completely be in a state of utter skepticism. But I simply could care less about what the geniuses of the world are pontificating about in Davos. Well, that's not altogether true. I suppose there is a sense of what's occurring there, as this is an annual meeting of the world's most powerful. It's just that many of these which include Wall Street bankers have completely lost my respect by their sheer greed, recklessness and dearth of ideas. As I read the tweets from those in Davos, there is no urgency and little relevancy. I wonder if this conference has largely become a mere meeting of fat cats where innovation is lacking and compliments among the attendees are aplenty, fattening themselves even more.

Being at Davos vs. TED

In a recent article Arianna Huffington made an excellent distinction between the attendees at the Davos conference and those at the Technological Entertainment and Design (TED) conference. The distinction here is no small observance, as it is innovation that will get us out of this slump and not old failed ideas.

She writes:

"I've been struck by how different the mood is here than it was last week in Davos. Much more upbeat. Maybe it's because TED is brimming with innovators, people less interested in figuring out how to prop up the collapsed economy of the last century than in creating an economy for the 21st century."

Innovation matters. Period.

Being Arianna Huffington

Here is Arianna's ever bright and brilliant response to what's really going on in Davos with regards to banker to government transactions as opposed to banker to banker transactions. There appears to be a lot of contrition going on in Davos too. But my question is how long will it last and what is the outcome?

Who will be held accountable for this massive mess? My advice? Follow the money. In this interview Arianna also speaks about the emergence of social media; she's pretty funny too. Her book, Pigs at the Trough: How Corporate Greed and Political Corruption Are Undermining America, was also mentioned. Perhaps it should be required reading for all those in attendance.

Being in Davos

This week is the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Swiss resort town. (You know it's a sweet spot when the billing is notably named for the posh town and not the event itself. The Forum is simply known as Davos.) Considering the climate, I wonder what the bankers and financial analysts will say and to whom will they be saying it? The likes of themselves? Will there be a lot of understanding among these? Will they pat each other on the back in affirmation that they did the best they could do? Will they speak among themselves of the big ticket items bought after respectively receiving their multi-billion dollar bonuses? Will they sit in natural hot springs sipping champagne and noshing on caviar after a day of insightful sessions?

Besides the bankers and financial analysts from Morgan Stanley and Charles Schwab, there will be quite a few distinguished guests, including World leaders. Among these are: Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. These sessions should also be interesting.

Arianna Huffington will be attending the conference and it looks like she will be chairing a few really interesting sessions on technology and social media. She is without doubt a pioneer of social media. Her sessions should be quite interesting too. But I would most like to hear the bankers and financial analysts at Davos talk about the lapse of ethics and deregulation in the form of free trade and globalization that have brought us to this global economic crisis. I have a few question to asks. Do you?